Softer Than Silk
by MaybeTommorrow
Summary: What happens when two rough things are rubbed on each other? They either crumble...or become softer. What happens when the rough Lieutenant Hawkeye rubs on the caustic Envy...only time will tell. EnRiz
1. Chapter 1

Hey all, don't worry I'm working on Promise too, but I've been hiding this one for awhile, it's based on the BEST RP PAIRING EVER! I'm not bias. So yeah, tell me what you think, I'll update...eventually. Hehehe...

Softer Than Silk

Chapter 1

Riza Hawkeye walked down the boulevard, Black Hayate's leash in hand, the other in her pocket on her pistol, just in case, one can never be too careful. It was dusk, the sun almost hidden beyond the horizon, barely giving enough light to see by, but the lamps were flickering to life so she wasn't really worried. Hayate stopped to sniff something before trotting in front of her again, she smiled lightly as she watched him, he was a good dog and good company, she was sure he was the only one who really understood her, of all of her close friends. It was a bit sad if one thought about it but understandable, she never opened up to anyone. But then again no one really made any effort to get to know her, sure the boys at the office knew her better than most and Roy knew her even better than them, but still she didn't have anyone to be socially intimate with. Though it was probably better that way, she really didn't have the time to be social. It was rare she had time to give Hayate a walk, but she had been able to give him a walk every night this week, taking a new route each time, she knew he was enjoying it.

She sighed as she looked up at the sky the stars were peeking out through the midnight veil, it was a dark blue, so very close to the color of Roy's eyes. She sighed again, she loved Roy, she really did, but it was hard to straighten that love from very close friendship and being _in love,_ she wasn't sure, but she knew he couldn't do anything even if the second was true anyhow. His ambitions would halt any chance they had with each other, and she couldn't be blinded by her love for him if she was supposed to be protecting his back. That was more important than anything else, and she would stick to that.

She nodded to herself she was decided, she had joined the military to support Roy and that was exactly what she would do. She was going to push him to the top and then maybe after that they could find where they stood, it would be a while but she could wait.

"Come on Hayate let's head back," she told the dog who had suddenly stopped, he was sniffing in the direction of the park, then he gave a short bark and a whine. "What is it?" she asked him and he gave a yank on the leash, she pursed her lips then decided to go with it on a whim, she could use some change, shake things up a bit. She chuckled, if anyone from the office heard her say that she was sure some of them would die of shock.

Hayate led her to the park, it was darker here, she gripped her gun tighter, she followed her dog to the foot of a tree he sat at the foot of it and looked up.

"Hayate?" she asked curiously before the dog started to bark placing his paws on the trunk of the tree and howled up into the branches.

"Shut up," someone snapped and then fell from the branches and landed with a small thud on the ground, not even five feet from them. Riza took a step back in shock, the figure straightened up, his long black hair falling around his thin shoulders, his black eyes glared at her, he looked far more upset than he should have.

"Get your stupid mutt away from me," he growled, and Riza pulled her gun out of her pocket just in case, she really had no choice in this scenario, especially with what she was facing, a homunculus. Envy, she was sure he was called, glanced at the gun and back at her.

"Get lost," he told her, not even flinching as the hammer was pulled back and Hayate growled at him.

"Homunculus, what are you doing here?" she demanded, her eyes narrowing at him and Envy snarled at her.

"None of your damn business!" he hissed in reply, and Riza aimed the gun and fired a warning shot past his face into the tree trunk, he didn't even flinch.

"Answer me," she ordered as she cocked the gun to fire another shot he scoffed at her then sneered.

"Why the hell should I do that? I was here first, you're the one invading my privacy," he snapped at her, "Get lost." he growled then he grabbed a tree branch and pulled himself back up into the tree.

Riza waited, and waited, but nothing happened, her eyes narrowed before she sighed and then started backing away keeping the tree in her sights until she was around a corner. That had been different.

She suddenly stopped and turned to look in the direction of the tree she could no longer see.

He had looked so..._devastated_. What on earth could have made a homunculus look so human? She shook her head, nothing had happened she had no need to think of the encounter further.

Riza was walking by the park again and Hayate growled at a tree that was over grown, it was pushing the side walk up and the branches hung over the walkway like a canopy. Hayate stopped under the tree and growled, Riza looked up and saw a black figure in the tree.

"You again, don't you have better things to do?" he sniped, and Black Hayate replied by barking up harshly at him.

"Oh shut up you stupid mutt," he snapped, "I am not," he snorted and Riza blinked, could Envy understand Hayate? That was...odd.

"I could ask you the same thing, what you are doing here?" she asked, and she heard another snort and then he dropped from the tree and straightened before leaning against it, crossing his arms and looking at her in boredom.

"And what would be the point of that? You think I'd tell you?" he made a sound that could have been a laugh, if it didn't sound so pained.

"No, however my curiosity will get the better of me," she replied and Envy snorted harder, she couldn't see his face since it was in shadows from the tree.

"You humans and your curiosity, they say curiosity killed the cat when in truth cats are far too cautious to do something as stupid as a human might," he said and Riza's eyebrows rose. He leaned forward so she could see his ironic smirk.

"Really?" she asked and he nodded then made a gesture to the current situation, his eyebrows rising to show her how stupid she was being.

"You don't see any cats asking me what's wrong," He sneered and Riza frowned, that was a point but a very ridiculous one.

"True, but that doesn't mean you don't need to be asked what's wrong." she replied and he rolled his eyes.

"What gives you right to ask, huh?" he snorted then waved his hand at her dismissively, "You're bothering me, go away." he said.

Riza frowned, she could do two things; she could leave and never give it a second thought or she could stay and push it. Normally she would just walk away, but something was telling her to push it, maybe it was the stubborn way his jaw was set, or the way his eyes looked, it was a combination of irritation and desperate loneliness, almost like he wanted her to ask

"Why are you here? Shouldn't you be taking over the world or something?" she asked, making it sound like she was fishing for information, and she kind of was.

"Taking over the world is an idle past time I do during the work day," he said flippantly, and Riza had to stop herself from snorting.

"Well then what could possibly have you out here brooding?" she asked and Envy's dark eyes turned to her, shifting several colors only to land on imitations of her own.

"I really don't see how that is your business," he said, his eyes narrowing and she sighed, bent down and unhooked Hayate's leash. Gave his head a rub, and then waved her hand, he barked and then ran off.

"It might not be, but if you don't talk about it, I have a feeling things might happen that will affect me." she said and he let an eyebrow quirk.

"So...this is about you?" he asked and then smirked, "Figures, humans are the most selfish beings alive, and that is saying something." he chuckled humorlessly, she frowned, he sounded almost hurt.

"I know it'll also make you feel better to get it off your chest," she said and he rolled his eyes, "What can it hurt?" she asked a bit less like she was trying to pressure him.

"A lot," he replied and she sighed then sat on the bench nearby crossing her ankles and then entwining her fingers, cupping a knee.

"I'm not going to leave." she stated simply and she saw him scowl and his hands fisted in irritation.

"Why does it matter so much? I'm the enemy remember? Leave me alone and worry about your friends!" he sneered out the last word and her eyebrow rose.

"Do I have reason to worry about them?" she asked and he smirked dangerously at her, he stalked over to her and leaned close so his face was mere inches from hers.

"Well...you should already know the answer to that," he said quietly his eyes flashing at her over his smirk, she didn't let it on that he was intimidating her, instead there was a click as she cocked her gun. His eyebrow raised and he grinned.

"Cocky," he said with an amused snort, "You're funny," he chuckled and then grabbed the gun out of her hands so fast she didn't expect it and didn't resist, he put it on his finger and twirled it around a few times.

"So you're curious as to why I'm out here huh?" he asked, tossing the gun from hand to hand, watching her as she watched the gun warily. He smirked seeing her eying it.

"If I wanted to kill you I wouldn't need a hunk of metal to do it," he told her in wry amusement, "And besides I'm sure the other pistol you have on your hip would give you just as much protection," he said somewhat sarcastically and she looked at him eyebrows raised in question.

"I've made a few mistakes recently and decided to pay more attention to detail," he said then frowned, there had been no point in telling her that.

"Everyone makes mistakes," she said sounding cautious and he laughed and shook his head tossing the gun up and then catching it in his other hand without looking.

"Humans you mean," he snorted and rolled his eyes, "Humans are made from mistakes, they build on them, thrive from them. Humans are imperfections that have little more meaning in the world other than fodder."

"If that was their only purpose then humans would not have been created, the whole point of living is to find that purpose," she said and he shrugged.

"On a small scale, but looking at the big picture, living is pointless," he said frowning, "Humans only live to die," he huffed and she looked at him more closely, there were ghosts in his eyes, there was something bothering him but it wasn't likely he would talk about it unless it was eased into conversation.

"Not true," she said quietly and then looked down at her hands, "Some live to please others, make them happy, others are here to help everyone, or to protect those you love," she said the last quietly, and he snorted.

"Love is lie, it doesn't matter how many times you say it or hear it or express it, it's never real, it's a fantasy humans come up with to give themselves reasons to stay alive, but you never get anything from it," he took the gun and aimed it at one of the trees firing a single shot, "Pointless," he said his eyes dark and troubled.

"Like firing a single shot during a war?" she asked raising her eyes up to his and he stared at her his jaw clenched then his eyes narrowed.

"Like talking to you," he said and then dropped the gun and turned around, he walked away without looking back and then disappeared behind a tree.

Riza let out a breath she hadn't realize she'd been holding, then took in a deep breath and let it out. She had discovered a few things about the homunculus, and was honestly curious to find out more.

"Like a cat," she chuckled to herself she picked up her gun and then whistled, Hayate came bounding back to her covered in dirt and looking as happy as can be.

"Oh Hayate what am I going to do with you?" she laughed and he yipped joyously, she smiled and rubbed his head and then put his leash back on. "You are getting a bath," she told him and he whined, she gave the dog a look he whined again but more in submission. She chuckled to herself, Hayate was a good dog, she did enjoy his company, but she needed some human contact too.

She looked up to the now darkened sky and sighed, unaware of the purple eyes and cat following her out of the park, or the same cat sitting on the street edge outside her apartment, staring curiously up at her window, wondering about her too.


	2. Chapter 2

Hmmm, this one may slow down JUST a bit, I need to go back and make changes in the early chapters so the stuff that happens later makes sense, I have the beginning and the end written, but the middle...well...*cough* So you all might have to be patient...BY THE WAY.

Thank you sooo much for such a warm response! It really made me happy! x) I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 2

Riza awoke early as usual, showered, dressed and had her cup of coffee. She sighed as she pat Hayate on the head on her way out, she only took him to work some days, usually the days she was outside most so he could run around and burn off his extra energy. But she was in the office today so he would stay home.

"Be good," she told him and he yipped and wagged his tail, she smiled as she closed the door, today would be a good day.

After locking her door she walked out of her building and started towards work, but stopped and turned, it felt like she was being watched, then she shook her head and continued on, not paying anymore mind to it. Not until the next day anyway, and the next and the next, she felt eyes on her everyday of the week and was starting to get a little irritated. If this was some kind of joke someone was going to be very holey.

It wasn't until Friday that she found her stalker, a small black kitten with big brown eyes was on the sidewalk on her way to work, now normally she didn't stop for animals, and she was more of a dog person, but she had a feeling this wasn't any ordinary kitten. But, she wouldn't be crass, it could just be a normal cat that gave off a malicious aura.

"So tiny, you'll get stepped on," she told it and it mewed, it's voice so small it made Riza's heart swoon just a bit, okay so it was cute, but still.

"Come on, go back home," she told it and it mewed again and she sighed, she had a feeling she was going to regret this. She picked it up and set it off to the side, it would be no good for it to be stepped on if it turned out to be a real kitten.

"Stay," she told it and it mewed again, then she turned and started walking to work, she turned back and wasn't at all surprised to see it following, she stopped herself from groaning.

"Go home, go on," she said waving her hand at it and it mewed once more, she groaned this time then picked it up, "Alright but just this once." she said and then put the tiny fur ball in her pocket.

It mewed from inside and she gave it a small pat and a hush then went to work, she'd almost forgotten about it once she arrived and sat down until someone heard it mewing.

"Lieutenant is your pocket meowing?" Fury asked his big eyes blinking in disbelief behind his glasses.

"Oh," she said and then reached into her pocket and pulled out the thoroughly frumpled kitten, "I forgot he was in there," she said setting it down on her desk.

"Oh wow! It's so tiny!" Fury said coming over and giving the kitten a small pet, it mewed plaintively at him.

"Yes, I was worried it would get stepped on," she said going back to her paperwork, "I'll give it to an animal shelter on the way home," she said and the cat mewed again.

"You're not going to keep it?" Fury asked a little saddened by that and Riza shook her head and smiled just a bit.

"Hayate could eat it without swallowing," she said and Fury looked torn between scandalized and amused. The man was so easy to tease, Riza was beginning to see why Breda and Havoc did it so often.

"It's so cute, it's such a pity to have to give it away," Fury said giving the kitten a finger to rub against, he smiled when it licked him with it's tiny rough tongue.

"He'll go to a good home, being that cute, little girls love kittens," she said organizing a few papers before putting them in a pile on the corner of the desk.

"Were you one of those little girls Lieutenant?" Roy Mustang asked with a small grin as he walked into the office.

"Perhaps, Sir," she said returning the grin with a small one of her own, Roy came over to her desk and looked down at the kitten.

"Oh wow it is small, it almost makes Fullmetal look normal sized...almost," he grinned, and then there was an outraged yell from the hall and he laughed outright.

"WHO'RE YOU CALLING SO SMALL EVEN A KITTEN COULD EAT HIM FOR BREAKFAST?" Edward Elric stood in the doorway to the office panting and glaring death at Mustang.

"Brother no one said that," Alphonse Elric said with a sigh as his armored body came up behind his brother.

"I don't care, someone is going to die for that!" he said and pointed at Mustang who rolled his eyes and muttered something about melodrama, but then all eyes went to the pile of paper that tumble off of the Lieutenant's desk and the small kitten that seemed to have pushed it.

"Oh so tiny! How very cute," Al said as he walked over and put his hand out for the cat, "Here kitty, come on," he said and the kitten sniffed his gauntlet and then rubbed against one of the fingers, Al giggled happily.

"Come on Fullmetal I'll take your report in my office," Mustang said after a moment and Ed nodded and then gave his brother a look that clearly told him not to get attached to the kitten. Al gave a metallic sigh, too late.

"Where did you find it Lieutenant?" Al asked cupping the small animal in his large palm, it mewed a few times in wonder and Al brushed it's back with a single finger to calm it.

"It was in front of my apartment building," she said and didn't bother mentioning that she didn't really think it was a cat, no need to spoil everyone else's day.

"It's strange imagining you would pick up a stray, Hawkeye," Havoc laughed after sitting in his chair.

"It followed me," she said simply as she bent over to pick up the fallen papers, Havoc nodded and turned to his own paperwork with a sigh.

"Maybe it knew you were kindhearted and would try to find it a home?" Alphonse said and Riza shook her head and chuckled at the boy.

"I'm not all that at all, Alphonse," she said with another chuckle, waving her hand dismissively and picked up her pen, and then a small kitten head was bumping into her hand.

"Meeew," he mewled, looking up at her with bright blue eyes, she stared back at him, as if daring him to show himself.

"Maybe he's hungry?" said Alphonse, said putting a single large finger on the kittens head and then running it down his back.

"No," Riza said and the kitten purred at her, "He just wants attention," she said and then looked down at the papers and started writing, it mewled a bit piteously, and bumped her hand again, she looked at him and gave him a straight look that told him she wasn't fooled by the act.

"Meeew!" he insisted and then pounced at her hand, clinging onto it with his paws and gnawing on her knuckle with little teeth that weren't sharp enough to break skin yet.

She gave a small 'Eep' and jumped, but she didn't shake him off and the other people in the office started laughing.

"What are you doing?" she asked him quietly, and he mewed loudly before licking at her hand, she sighed and shook her head, everyone was now talking about the Lieutenant being bested by a kitten. She frowned.

"Everyone back to work, now," she said and then pulled out her pistol, everyone froze like deer in headlights and then immediately got to their desks, just then Roy's office door flew open and Edward came stomping out.

"Stupid bastard!" he shrieked and then grabbed Alphonse's arm, "Come on Al!" he said and stomped out, Al sighed and then bowed to them on the way out.

Roy leaned on his door frame, "Oh that boy," he groaned and Riza laughed at him quietly.

"Can't handle a fifteen year old boy Colonel?" she asked sweetly and the man stuck his tongue out at her.

"I can handle him just fine, he just can't handle me." he said and Havoc and Breda snorted into their paperwork.

"Meeeeeew," the kitten mewled and Roy looked down at it, the kitten rolled on it's back and started batting at the air, he laughed quietly and put down a finger so the kitten could bat at it. It mewed appreciatively, and without the man noticing let it's claws out and raked his finger he pulled it back with a yelp and looked down, his finger had a small prick in it he looked down at the kitten and glared, it mewed as if to question why. He frowned at it but then sighed and went back into his office, not noticing the slight smirk the kitten shot in his direction.

For the rest of the day the kitten stayed on Riza's desk batting around erasers and knocking over stacks of paper, at one point he almost fell off of the desk because he'd tried to pounce a rolling pen but his paws were too soft, so he slid right over the edge and almost fell into the trash can, but Riza caught him before he did, he nuzzled her hand in thanks and she sighed and put him back on the desk and told him to behave himself, he mewed at her and she took that as a yes.

He didn't cause anymore trouble for the rest of the day, she put him back in her pocket and he was close to falling asleep out of boredom, they were the last to leave. He mewed at her tiredly from her pocket, and she hummed back at him, more or less telling him to stop whining.

She walked back home and then came to a stop where she found him, she took him out of her pocket and put him back on the ground.

"This isn't happening again tomorrow," she told him and he mewled at her sadly, and then attached himself to her pants.

"Envy," she said and then pulled out her pistol and pointed it at him, but there was a gasp and she looked up as a mother dragged her daughter away from the scene, she glared back down at the cat, who she saw very distinctly smirking. She scowled and then scooped down and grabbed him before going up to her apartment. She opened the door and then tossed him on the couch.

"You did that on purpose," she said, she crossed her arms and glared, the kitten mewed again, she snorted at him, "You're not fooling me," she said and then the cat started laughing its' legs elongated and the fur receded, forming the long haired scantily clad homunculus.

"How'd you know?" he asked, reclining on the couch as if he owned it, "It's not like I was obvious," he said and she grunted then went into the kitchen, he pouted and followed crawling over the back of the couch to do so.

"What do you want?" she asked back without answering first and he pouted again, then sat on the table.

"You first," he said and she pulled her gun out and gave him a look, telling him to get off the table or she'd shoot, he frowned but flopped onto a chair, he didn't fancy getting shot today.

"I just knew," she said and then turned to look at him, she wasn't going to put her gun away either.

"Well that's no fun, guess I have to try harder next time." he hummed and then she raised her eyebrows at him, he sighed, "I was bored," he answered and she knew he wasn't entirely being honest, but she hadn't really expected a truthful answer.

She sighed and shook her head, and then went to the fridge and pulled out some left over take out, she grabbed a fork and stuck it in, eating it cold, she just wanted to get to bed, the only problem was she had an unwanted guest.

She gazed at him and he gazed back unblinkingly, he sat on her kitchen chair with one leg up his hands on it, while he grinned at her, the other leg hanging off swinging back and forth, he looked like a child, almost cute in a way.

"What are you thinking?" he asked, curiosity evident in his voice, she blinked at him, he was rather blunt.

"Why do you need to know?" she asked back and he pouted, making him look even more childlike.

"Can't I ask a simple question?" he said and she frowned at him in thought, and then nodded.

"Yes I guess you can, but I can't guarantee you'll like the answer." she said and he frowned thinking it over then shrugged, he didn't care. "I was thinking about what it was that night I found you in the tree that had you so distressed," she said and he blinked at her almost in disbelief.

"What...?" he blinked and then he went red, "I was not distressed!" he shrieked and she snorted in a bit of laughter.

"Distraught, disturbed, unbalanced," she said and he went even more red, his arms flailing a bit, his foot stomping on the floor.

"I was not!" he wailed and she started laughing more, he was so funny, it was almost cute how he threw a tantrum, he stopped wailing only to glare at her.

"Stop laughing," he demanded and he sounded a bit dangerous, so she thought it best if she stopped, so she did, but not without effort.

"Alright," she said but she couldn't stop smiling, then she looked at him, "Why were you out there?" she asked and he huffed and crossed his arms.

"I really don't think that's any of your business," he replied and she shrugged continuing to eat.

"It's your business," she confirmed and he nodded satisfied, she finished her dinner and dumped the empty container in the trash.

"I'm heading to bed now," she told him and he blinked at her, "So uh..." she made a small gesture and he smiled.

"I'm fine here!" he said cheerfully, and she frowned at him unamused and he snorted, "I'm not gonna kill you in your sleep, there's no amusement in that for me," he said and she sighed, she was too tired to argue, so just shook her head and headed for her bedroom.

"Don't break anything," she said and he grinned at her back, glad he'd won, though he didn't know what he was going to do, he'd figure it out.


	3. Chapter 3

I am really happy with the reception this story has gotten! I wasn't sure how it would be taken, but if you know me, you know I like odd pairings, I am an odd shipper. Haha, well anyway, thanks so much you all! Enjoy more Envy!Kitty~

Chapter 3

The next morning, Envy was gone, Riza didn't know if this was reliving or worrying, but didn't let it bother her as she got ready for work and headed out. She had more important matters at hand, like making sure the paperwork was finished by the end of the week. The day passed by without incident, until she got home and found the homunculus on her couch, laying upside down with his head on the floor having a staring contest with Hayate. The dog was staring him down, not acting the happy puppy he usually did, she guessed he knew Envy wasn't a normal guest and was trying to see if he could intimidate the larger and more dangerous homunculus, it was cute in a way and rather amusing, she just hoped Envy didn't get angry at the puppy and hurt him.

"You were gone a long time," Envy said not looking away, Hayate yipped at her in greeting, and she sighed and went over to the two of them picking up the puppy, who whined a bit, Envy whined too.

"Hey we were busy!" he said and she shook her head a bit, this was odd, Envy slid off the couch and onto the floor before getting up and following her into the kitchen.

"All you ever do is work and sleep and walk your dog, how boring," he told her and she sighed, really too tired to reply.

He pouted, not liking the silence, he didn't like being ignored, "What do you _do_ at work anyway?" he asked, and she took off her jacket before answering.

"Look over paperwork for the Colonel to sign and then do my own paperwork mostly, and then make sure everyone else is doing their job instead of screwing off, and then send singed papers off to the proper departments," she said and he looked at her wide eyed.

"And they say I'm crazy, doing that would drive anyone batty," he said and she blinked before laughing a little bit, smiling tiredly.

"Oh yeah? And what is it that you do?" she asked, curious despite herself, he shrugged staring at her, though she wasn't sure why.

"Whatever my Father wants me to do, I'm here to serve him," he said and cocked his head at her, she was frowning.

"And what is that?" she asked and he smirked, his eyes glinting dangerously.

"I'm sure you really don't want to know," he said lowly and she pursed her lips, that was probably true.

"Why do you keep coming back?" she asked and he hopped onto a kitchen chair, leaning on the table.

"Cause," he replied and she stared at him wryly waiting for more and sighed when nothing else came. She turned and grabbed some more left overs, sitting at the table, fully aware that he was still staring at her.

"Am I really that interesting?" she asked looking at him and he grinned cheekily, blinking at her innocently.

"Maybe," he replied ambiguously, she rolled her eyes, and stood up to grab a glass of water, self-consciously aware of his eyes following her, she sat back down and then looked at him in return.

"You said you're here to serve your father, is that why you're following me too?" she asked and he blinked at her, his brow furrowing a bit.

"No," he said and then bit his bottom lip, "I'm not supposed to do stuff like this," he said sounding somewhat like a child caught in a toy store without their mother's permission.

"I see," she said taking another bite of food and then drink of water, "Then why are you?" she asked and he looked at her, he didn't seem to know the answer.

Despite not knowing why he came to her, Envy came back to her place often, whenever he was gone for a long period of time Riza assumed he was off doing what his father wanted of him, she thought it odd that he had a father, maybe he had a mother as well, but he never talked about her if he did.

He came by as often as he felt even if she wasn't up for it, he wasn't really up for bowing to her personal needs he wasn't even aware he needed to. But when he did come, they talked, and that honestly wasn't a bad thing, they talked of little things, nothing truly important, but it must have been enough for Envy, because he kept coming back.

She wasn't sure when or how, but eventually they started talking about things more deeply and long into the night, he would talk about his siblings and how he missed when they treated him like a sibling instead of like a soldier, like they did now. He said he was a soldier essentially, but that didn't mean he had to like it. He complained about Wrath, who was his younger brother but thought he had the right to boss him around, though he refused to tell her who he was. And then they talked about their likes and dislikes, he found out she liked mystery novels and plays, he had never been to one before and she promised on her next day off they would go to one together, he seemed very excited for that. They also spoke of people and places, she was rather interested in all the places he'd been to, and was impressed by how much he seemed to have picked up, he knew three other languages, Drachmanian, Cretian, and Aeurogian. He taught her a few words in Drachmanian and then refused to tell her what they meant, she had a strong suspicion of what they meant so decidedly never used them. He also spoke of people, of how they were the same everywhere all selfish, but he supposed that's what made them human. They were different from him, they could do what they wanted whenever, he couldn't when Father called him, he had to come, he didn't think of breaking off, not after what happened to Greed. It was too scary.

They were on her bed late at night, he'd shown up as she was getting ready for bed and she didn't want to get up so he'd hoped on her bed too, he was laying on his stomach kicking his legs back and forth while she read a book, he was thinking about something making faces as he did so. She looked at him curiously.

"What is it?" she asked, and he frowned before letting out a deep sigh.

"What would you do if I killed someone you knew?" he asked and she gazed at him for a moment, then she thought.

"I...I'm not sure I guess," she said, "I've never thought about it, but I suppose all I can do is deal with it. You do what you have to do because of your father, yes?" she questioned and he nodded slowly.

"Right, and all the people I know are deeply involved in...things, so it's an occupational hazard I guess," she said and he nodded.

"Okay," He said and then he bit his lip, "I..." he started and then made a face, "I'll try not to kill anyone you know," he said and she looked at him surprised then she smiled.

"Thanks," she said, chuckling and he smiled back, beaming at her response, she wondered if anyone had ever thanked him before.

"Envy?" she asked, a thought occurring to her suddenly, he hummed to show her he was listening, "What do you do for fun?" she asked, "And I mean you, not what your father lets you do," she clarified and he frowned. His first answer had been, toying with humans, proving his superiority. But that wasn't really his thing to do, he did that because of the great influence Pride and Father had had on him.

"I like..." he concentrated, taking a long moment to think before answering, "I like watching people," he said finally.

"Really?" she asked and he nodded, she was a bit surprised by the sincerity of his answer, but was pleased by it.

"Humans...they're so selfish, I've realized. Humans are selfish, but that's what makes them human. Children and adults, they want so much, and then get it by any means, they do it for themselves...when we do that...we do it for Father." he said and then blinked and blushed turning away from her, he obviously hadn't meant to share so much, but she smiled, she liked the fact that he had. He was relaxed enough around her to let things slip.

"I don't know...I've seen humans who are anything but selfish, but I suppose if you look at it from your perspective, just living is selfish huh?" she asked and he nodded grinning, glad she had saved him.

"Yeah, you should stop that," he grinned, his eyes twinkling happily, she rolled her eyes but she smiled in a pleased way and then went back to her book.

For an impromptu friendship, it really wasn't that bad.

Riza was fairly surprised when Envy came prancing into the office one day, in the guise of a black cat of course, he hopped on her desk and mewed. She blinked at him, as did all the others in the office, until they started laughing.

"Looks like you've made a friend Lieutenant," the blond second lieutenant laughed, chewing on the end of his cigarette, she gave the man a look and the cat mewed again and bumped her hand with it's head.

"What?" she asked giving him a look and he flipped his tail, and blinked at her, his eyes went to the door and back to her, she shook her head discreetly and tapped at the paperwork. He stared at her and then took a few measured steps forward, the pads on his paws not making a sound, and then he dropped down on top of the paperwork.

She looked annoyed, "Off," she told him and he simply flipped his tail a few times, crossing his forepaws over each other and mewed quietly.

She huffed and then picked him up and moved him over, he stared at her, looking offended, she smirked wryly at him, and then started on her paperwork again, that was she tried to anyway. But he had grabbed her pen and now had it in his mouth, he leapt off the desk and went to the door.

"En-" she started but knew she couldn't call his name in the office, "Cat! Get back here!" she demanded and he gave a muffled meow and then dashed out the door. She grumbled and followed him out just as Roy came out of his office.

"Lieutena...nt..." he blinked and watched as her coat tail went out the door.

"I'll be back!" she called, he gaped at where she had been and turned to the others, who were all laughing.

"She's following a cat," Fury said and Roy looked at him incredulously and then gave a bark of laughter.

"Oh I have to see this," he said and then followed her out, he didn't have to go far, he heard her voice coming from a nearby empty office.

"Envy, you can't just come into the office and bother me whenever you like," she said and Roy peeked into the room to see her setting the cat on the desk, his eyes widened as he watched the cat transform into a scantily clad girl...or was it a boy? He couldn't tell, but he did see the ouroboros and immediately knew what this person was. She had also called him 'Envy,' this didn't look good.

"Aw, why not? You looked like you needed a break," he said with a laugh, kicking his legs back and forth twirling her pen between his fingers.

"I did not," she scowled at him and made a grab for the pen but he held it away, smirking.

"Oh really, then why is it that you came after me when you had three other pens on your desk?" he asked and she crossed her arms.

"I have a system, I use one pen at a time, I'm still using that one," she said and he rolled his eyes at her.

"Your life _must_ be dull if you have to do things like that to entertain yourself," he said sighing at her pityingly.

"Oh and you've taken it upon yourself to change that have you?" she asked and he beamed at her.

"Yup!" he sang happily and she sighed and then snatched her pen back, he pouted at her and made feeble attempts to take it back, but she held him away with a hand on his face.

"Give it back," he whined, grabbing at it and she rolled her eyes and flicked his forehead, he pouted.

"If you promise to be good I'll let you stay in the office," she said and he bobbed his head several times.

"I will!" he said excitedly, and then turned back into a cat, he mewed just as excitedly, and she rolled her eyes but picked him up and headed for the door, Roy had left by then and was back in his office contemplating things.

He saw her holding the cat as she walked back into the office and set it on her desk, she sat down and started working on her paperwork and once she was suitably distracted the cat turned it's yellow eyes on Roy, they glinted and gave the man what was unmistakably a smirk, he'd known the man had been outside the door listening. Roy glared at him and slammed his office door closed. This was not good, not good at all.

The cat was with her again, every single day now, he had tried talking to her about it once but the cat had followed her into the office and had made himself at home on Roy's desk, Roy had glared at it, and had nearly snapped his fingers at it but Riza had grabbed him off of the desk and held him in her arms before asking what he needed, and he didn't want to discuss it with him there so he had given her some finished paperwork and sent her off again. He didn't know why she was doing this, surely she knew what that being was, why was she being so reckless? It worried him greatly, and he wanted it to stop. Immediately.

"Riza this is not wise," Roy said seriously, his brows furrowed and his dark eyes troubled as he looked at his long time friend and subordinate.

Finally she had come to work alone, and he had called her into his office without any cats following her in. He was gazing at her, Riza didn't show any of her own emotions.

"It depends what you mean, sir," she said and Roy exhaled and stood, he walked around his desk and took Riza's hand in his own.

"Riza, I'm talking to you as a friend, not a commanding officer. I'm worried about you, this...this fraternization with the homunculus is unhealthy," he said cautiously and Riza frowned at him and took her hand back, she didn't know how he had figured it out, and it didn't really matter, she still felt it was none of his business.

"I appreciate the concern Roy, but Envy isn't as bad as you make him out to be, he just wants someone to listen to him, he seems almost human," she replied and Roy scowled.

"But that's just it, he _isn't_ human, he's one of the enemy!" he said running a frustrated hand through his hair, making it stick up in odd ways. Riza sighed and gentled her demeanor just slightly and sighed.

"Roy, I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. Please don't worry about me, I know what I'm doing." she said and Roy's lips pursed he obviously wanted to say more but the way Riza was looking at him, he didn't want to incite her wrath.

"Fine, you can go back to work," he sighed then sat back down, she nodded and went to the door, she turned and looked at him, smiling.

"Thank you for the concern Roy, it means a lot," she said and then she left, closing the door behind her gently. Roy sighed, he knew this was going to end badly, he just knew it.


	4. Chapter 4

I'm really glad you're liking this story! And thank you for your reviews, though this story could always use more love. ;P I appreciate them all.

Chapter 4

"I have a day off next Saturday," Riza said and Envy looked up from one of her mystery books, it amused her to see him reading them, he just didn't seem the reading type, turned out he liked history too. Historical mysteries were his favorite.

"Oh?" he prompted and she nodded.

"I said we would go to a play on my next day off, remember?" she said and he gave her a look and then pointed accusingly at her.

"That was almost three months ago," he pointed out, "You work too hard," he nodded and she rolled her eyes, according to him she was wasting her life, but when asked what she should be doing he had no reply. But he really shouldn't talk as he got bored easily, he'd stopped coming to work with her because he simply had nothing to do, except harass Mustang, and Riza didn't want repercussions occurring because of that.

"And you hardly work," she replied and he huffed.

"Like you'd know if I was or not, I can assure you I've been working very hard," he said and smirked darkly opening his mouth again, she held her hand up.

"I don't need to know," she said quickly, he chuckled.

"Wimp," he chuckled, "Right so, a play?" he asked and she nodded and held out the newspaper to him.

"There are three going on right now, a romance, a musical and a murder mystery," she said, at the last one he grinned.

"Murder!" he cheered, she rolled her eyes, he would only focus on that, "Let's see that one! Will there be blood?" he asked, grinning widely.

"Not real blood, but there might be some fake blood," she replied shrugging, he deflated a bit, but still seemed eager to go.

"Fiiine," he sighed, "But you promised we'd go, so we're still gonna go," he said nodding, she smiled he sounded like an eager child it was cute, almost.

"We'll go, but you'll have to disguise yourself, they won't let you in like that," she said pointing at his scantily clad self.

"Why, what's wrong with it?" he frowned, and she tried not to laugh, his perspective on life was fairly amusing.

"Because it's a nice place you have to wear nice clothes," she said, "Women usually wear dresses or skirts, men wear suits or dress up shirts and pants, so you have to decide." she said and he crossed his arms.

"Well that's no fun," he said and then shrugged, "Fine, I'll be all pretty," he sighed and she laughed.

"I know how hard that is for you," she grinned and he glared at her.

"I'm not ugly," he snapped and she shook her head, he seemed to be very sensitive about his looks.

"I didn't say you were," she said quickly, "You're not bad looking at all, just a little...skinny," she said looking him over, he really was very skinny, it would worry her, if he were human.

"Skinny?" he asked, and she nodded, "How am I skinny?" he pouted and she smiled, glad he wasn't upset anymore.

"Well, if you were a human...you'd be considered sick, like you don't eat enough," she said and he frowned in thought looking down at his body and then he looked at hers and back.

"It's...bad looking?" he asked looking worried, and she could tell he was sensitive about this.

"No...you don't look bad...just sick," she said, and he nodded slowly, and then looked at her again then let light run over his body. When he was done, he was less skinny and more slender, Riza's eye's widened suddenly, he...looked good. Very good. She blushed.

"That looks perfect," she coughed, but that seemed to be the best thing to say, he beamed at her happily.

"Good!" he hopped up, "Okay, I'll see you Saturday and I'll dress faaaancy." he huffed and then hopped out of the room, past Hayate and then out the window.

Hayate's head cocked to the side and looked up at her, she sighed and shook her head, he was so weird. But, that was okay.

Saturday evening came and Envy knocked on the door, Riza opened it and nearly gaped, Envy was dressed in a black suit, his hair was tied back, looking nice and well kept. He looked remarkably dashing, completely unrecognizable.

"Well?" he asked, frowning when she didn't say anything she coughed to cover her stunned silence.

"You look great," she said weakly, he smiled, satisfied and then looked her over, she was still mostly in uniform, "That's not what you're wearing is it?"

"No, no, I was getting ready," she said and Envy nodded and slipped into the room, Hayate bounded up to him and barked, his tail wagged excitedly. Riza was amused at how good friends the two had become.

"We can't play, you'll get my suit dirty," Envy said, sticking his nose up, Hayate whined, "No, not this time, mutt."

Riza shook her head and went to her room to get dressed, she picked out a black dress, it was a double halter, so it had a back but no sleeves, it was nice and simple, but she looked very good in it.

She came back out and Envy frowned at her, "Oh no, that won't do," he said.

"What's wrong with it?" she asked looking at her dress, wondering if it was ripped, he shook his head.

"No that looks fine, I mean your hair, you have to put it down," he said and came over and pulled her clip out, "There, now it's fair, mine is up and yours is down," he beamed.

Riza laughed, "Alright, it's fair," she said and then turned to the door, "Ready?"

"Yep," he replied and grinned and walked out the door with a bit of a hop in his step.

She shook her head closing the door behind her and putting her keys in her purse, they walked down the boulevard, Envy looked around and asked what everything was excitedly, he'd been here before but he didn't know what most of the businesses were for he'd never really needed to, Riza did her best to explain.

"Riiizaaa, what's that place?" he asked pointing at the bank.

"The bank, it holds people's money," she explained, and he nodded and frowned.

"I've always wondered why people needed money," he said and Riza had to think about it.

"Well, we need it to buy food and a house and clothes, and we go to work to make money," she said and Envy frowned.

"Yeah, but why? Wouldn't it be easier just to give something else in exchange for what you need?" he asked and she smiled at him.

"It used to be, but not now, in our modern world it's easier to use a currency," she said, "I can't really explain the specifics, that's an economists specialty, but I can say that money can be a pain sometimes."

"Oh," Envy shrugged and then pointed to another building, "What's that place?"

"The newspaper," she said and he snorted.

"Silly humans, always keeping in touch with nothing," he chuckled, she rolled her eyes and laughed, then put her arm through his.

"Come on, Romeo, we have a play to get to," she said and he gave her an odd look.

"Who the hell is Romeo?" he asked and she just laughed.

It didn't take long for them to get to the theatre and once they were there Envy gaped at everything, the fancy curtains and carpet and staircases and statues and the other nicely dressed people, she chuckled lightly, and made him wait while she bought the tickets. She had to grab his arm and take him to their seats because he was so busy looking around.

"Riza! What's that for?" he asked pointing at the door at the wing of the stage.

"Another way to get on and off stage I suppose, they'll probably use it during the play," she said and he nodded and pointed at more things, eventually Riza had to tell him to hush because the play was starting.

Envy stared at the stage intently, and Riza couldn't help but smile, he was so engrossed it was pleasing, to know she had shown him this, she turned to the stage just as the curtains opened.

Envy's attention was undivided during the entire play, occasionally he would hop in his seat, and point at the stage and pat her arm as if to say 'look!', she had to stop herself from laughing. He was so cute when he was excited.

When it was finished they were walking out of the theatre Envy was jabbering away about the play, Riza listened a bit, knowing she wouldn't get a word in edgewise, he was having too much fun.

"So you liked it, huh?" she asked when he was taking a breath, he nodded vigorously.

"Can we go again?" he asked and she laughed.

"Sure, but it'll be a while until I have another day off," she said and he pouted.

"Awwww, you work too hard, and I like you like this, you don't look as..." he waved his hands at her clothes, "stressed...angry..." he shrugged, "You just look better."

She blushed, "Thanks...I think," she said, he'd just complimented her, that was strange of him, he shrugged again, he probably hadn't realized he'd complimented her at all.

"Just saying the truth-" he started but another voice called out to her.

"Lieutenant Hawkeye!" she turned to see a Sargent from another unit waving at her, "Wow, I almost didn't recognize you, but then I spotted the gun," he chuckled pointing at the handle of a pistol in her purse.

"Oh, hello Sergeant Hess," Riza said, feeling just a bit awkward, "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I was out with my girlfriend," he said and then seemed to get a bit awkward too, Envy looked between the two of them.

"Oh, that's...nice," Riza said, not sure she should say anything else, then the Sargent spotted Envy.

"Oh is this your boyfriend? Nice to meet you," he held out his hand and Envy stared at it until the man pulled it away with a cough, "Well, uh, it's good to see you've settled down, he must be just as tough and hard as you," he laughed.

Riza was blushing, feeling very awkward she then looped her arm through Envy's and then turned. "Y-yes, well if you'll excuse us," she said sharply and started dragging Envy away, he looked back at the man who was looking a bit sheepish.

"What was that all about?" he asked and Riza shook her head, she didn't want to talk about it, he would have pushed but the look on her face stopped him from doing so, so he just walked with her back to her apartment. He stayed until she looked less harried, and made sure she was okay, he wouldn't be much of a friend if he didn't do that, right?

But he was still curious, there had been something going on, he really wanted to know what it was.

It took him awhile, but he finally figure out why Riza had acted so strangely, that man, who had been trying to compliment her had really been insulting her, calling her 'hard' and 'tough', though she may have been, she was still a woman, and at that moment she had not been putting on the facade of a woman who was trying to be either of those things, so it had been insulting. It was a good thing Envy hadn't caught sight of that soldier, otherwise he'd probably be dead by then, not that Envy cared or anything, he would just be for fun...

Envy watched her from a distance trying to see what no one else could, she was so soft, why couldn't anyone else see? They were wrong. She was beautiful and kind. But no one else seemed to notice, she acted hard and tough but that was her outer shell inside she was much different, he didn't think anyone else could tell. He didn't think she even knew. But she had to know, after all she had befriended him hadn't she? She was either very kind...or very stupid. He wanted to believe she was kind, he would believe anything at this point.

It hurt so much, and it shouldn't have, but he'd been left and it hurt he couldn't handle it again and this one time, she had come to him. He wasn't the one who had to go looking for comfort, if he believed in the stuff, he'd almost say it was fate. Almost.

He snorted and cocked his head, placing his chin in his hand and his elbow on his knee, he watched as her hand went to her pistol and everyone in the office immediately got to work, so maybe they had a bit of a basis for her 'hardass' reputation accusations. But she still wasn't as bad as they thought.

He wanted to show her that she was soft, that she was kind and sweet, but he didn't know how, but hopefully by spending more time with her he'd figure a way how to do that. He made it a habit to be with her whenever he could and that was fairly often, before either of them knew it, they had been talking and becoming closer for nearly five months.

He had no idea how to feel about it and then wondered...was this what it was like to have a real friend?


End file.
